


Hero Complex

by Dobby_and_Padfoot



Category: Alex Rider - Anthony Horowitz, Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: Gen, Kidnapped
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-04
Updated: 2019-04-20
Packaged: 2019-07-06 16:04:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,546
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15889380
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dobby_and_Padfoot/pseuds/Dobby_and_Padfoot
Summary: When Alex Rider, Percy Jackson, and Harry Potter wake up in a cell together, they don't know what's going on, but as they start to get to know each other, they realize they aren't really so different from each other. Who brought them here? And why? Is it an old enemy? A new ally? Timelines have been adjusted to mesh better.July 31, 1992  -   Harry is bornAugust 18, 1993  -  Percy is bornFebruary 13, 1994  -  Alex is bornAll the other events follow canon for all series, but only through SCORPIA Rising for Alex Rider because I haven't read Never Say Die yet. Also, I made further history for Alex since his story only goes through when he’s fifteen. The Pleasures are dead, and he went back to spying, willingly, because he wasn't cut out for civilian life.The story starts in 2010.





	1. Awake

When Alex Rider woke up in a cell, he was surprised. It wasn't the fact that he was in a cell that surprised him; waking up in a cell was something that happened to him surprisingly often since he started working for MI6 again when the Pleasures died. No. The reason Alex was so shocked was that there were two other teenagers in the cell with him.

Both of the teenagers had black hair and neither looked like they could be any older than 20, which was the reason for Alex’s shock. As far as he knew, no other teenagers were in the same business as him, which made being kidnapped with two other teenagers quite strange. He inspected the cell to see if he could find any clues as to who had taken them, and to how they might get out.

Nothing. There were no clues, anywhere.

The room was completely blank. The walls were a nondescript gray without a single scratch marring its bland surface. The floor was the same, all 10 by 10 feet of it. There were no windows, and though Alex could see a faint outline of a door, there was no door handle or visible way to open it. Alex sat down on the floor, thoroughly frustrated. Not to mention his claustrophobia was starting to act up, but he knew how to handle that.

All in all, Alex was worried. He would've thought that the other boys would have woken up by then; of course, that was considering they were knocked out at the same time. On the subject of time, Alex had no idea how long he himself had been asleep. The last thing he remembered was arriving back at his house after his mission in France. That was August 9th. Surely it couldn't be much later than that.

Alex was startled out of his pondering when the older of the two boys started to awaken. Alex scooted away from him in case he was violent when he woke.

✶✶✶

Harry groaned, and pain shot up his spine. His initial thought was that he had fallen out of bed and slept on the floor again, but that didn't make sense. Harry had been staying at Grimmauld Place since the war had ended, and he was sure that none of the rooms he went in had concrete flooring.

He sat up and saw the smallness of the room he was in. He jumped backwards in shock when he saw a pair of eyes staring at him from the corner of the room. It was a sandy-brown haired kid, with brown eyes. Harry thought he looked to be between fifteen and seventeen years old.

“Who are you?” Harry asked him, voice hoarse from just having woken up.

“I'm not in the habit of revealing my identity to complete strangers. For all I know, you might be a part of an international terrorist organization hell-bent on taking over the world,” the kid said.

“I’m locked in a cell with you,” Harry said flatly. 

“Which could be a ploy to convince me to give you information,” the boy said as though it were a perfectly normal thing to assume of another person. 

“Yeah, whatever you say,” Harry replied, exasperated; this boy was strange. Why would he think Harry was a terrorist, “I'm Harry.”

The kid just stared at Harry as if he had lost his mind. Harry felt a little self-conscious and confused about what it was he had done.

✶✶✶

Alex stared at him. This boy- Harry- must not be very bright. Did he really think that the only threat of people being dangerous was inside the cell? Surely he must realize that someone could have been listening outside of the cell. Not to mention he was assuming Alex was harmless when at least half the criminal underground knew this wasn’t the case. This made it clear to Alex that Harry was not a spy. He couldn't decide if that relieved him or not.

“You do realize that other people could be listening to our conversation from outside of this cell? Right?” Alex said.

“They probably know who I am already,” Harry replied. This confused Alex. Was this boy famous or something because Alex couldn't remember ever having seen him, and he had a pretty good memory.

“Maybe not.”

“So what, though?” Harry argued, “All they have is my first name.”

Alex rolled his eyes, “Oh yeah. And your appearance, approximate age, fingerprints, and DNA, but it’s not like they can use those things to narrow down the results of people named Harry.”

He sighed and said, “At least give me something to call you. I'd rather not keep calling you the kid inside of my head.”

Alex thought for a minute before deciding that his SAS codename would come in handy here, “Cub. You can call me Cub.”

✶✶✶

Harry wasn't sure what to make of… Cub. On one hand, he didn't seem like a bad kid, but on the other, he seemed a bit paranoid. Okay, more than a bit.

Harry wondered if he was a wizard. He knew plenty of wizards that were just as paranoid as Cub. The one that came to Harry’s mind was Mad-Eye Moody. Maybe they were related.

But, no, that couldn't be right. Cub hadn't recognized Harry. If he were a wizard, he would have known about Harry Potter. Harry had yet to meet a wizard, or witch, that didn't recognize him from his scar. This kid didn't show any acknowledgment to having ever heard of him before.

Harry decided that he should probably try to figure out where he was and how he came to be here. He berated himself for not thinking of that sooner. If Hermione were here, she’d slap him around the head for neglecting the obvious.

Harry looked around the room. The first thing he noticed, which he definitely should have seen before, was another kid still asleep. This kid had black hair, much like himself, and he looked older than Cub did.

“Do you know who this kid is?” Harry asked Cub.

“He’s knocked out. When exactly do you think he had time to introduce himself,” Cub said sarcastically, “And, besides, I'm hoping on him being smarter than you and not blurting out his name for our captors to hear.”

Harry shook his head. Was Cub still on about that?

“Oh for the love of Merlin, could you just drop it?” He said.

Cub gave him a strange look as though he was trying to work him out like he was a puzzle. That’s when Harry realized he had sworn on Merlin. Great now Cub was going to think he was crazy.

It was several moments later, and Harry was starting to think that maybe Cub would just put it off as one of his quirks or something, when Cub said, “Merlin. Wasn't that the old wizard guy that helped Arthur become King of Camelot?”

Harry furrowed his eyebrows. Camelot. He felt like he probably should have recognized this name, but he hadn't been to a muggle school since he was ten, so he felt that he really couldn't be held accountable for it. For the second time, Harry thought of Hermione. This was something he felt she would've known.

“Who’s Arthur?” Harry asked.

Cub gave him a long look, as if his lack of knowledge was shocking to him, “You know? The Sword in the Stone? The Lady at the Lake? Nothing?”

Harry shook his head, feeling somewhat embarrassed by the fact that he couldn't remember this fact. He was drawn from his self-deprecation when Cub, whose eyes had been fixed on Harry, flitted his vision to Harry’s left, where the other boy was laying.

✶✶✶

Alex’s eyes shifted to the other boy in their cell. He looked like he was having a flashback. He was shifting in his sleep and muttering, much like Alex himself had been told that he did during his flashbacks. Alex caught words like, “Not, Annabeth, no”, “Get away from them”, “Kronos”, and “Gaea.” He wasn't sure what the boy was talking about, but he recognized the last two names from Greek mythology. Kronos, king of the Titans and Gaea, the goddess of earth and mother of Titans and was it Giants. Alex thought that might have been it.

Harry reached out his hand towards the other boy, probably intending to wake him up, but Alex pushed his hand back.

“Don't,” he said, “You could frighten him.”

“What?”

“If he’s having a flashback, and you try to wake him, he might assume that you are a part of his dream, and both you and he could end up being injured.”

Harry looked upset, “How would you know that? We can't just leave him; he’s in pain.”

Alex winced at Harry’s question. Thinking back on the worst moments of his life. Jack getting in the jeep. It exploding. Alex shook his head to clear those thoughts and noticed Harry looking at him concerned.

“Are you alright?” Harry asked.

✶✶✶

“I'm fine,” Alex said, quickly, “And we can try to wake him just don't touch him, that could trigger a reaction from him.”

Harry still felt that something was the matter with Cub, but he dropped it and said, “Ok.”

He moved closer to the boy, under Cub’s watchful eye, ensuring he didn't get to close, and said, “Hey, mate. Wake up.”

He stirred, but other than that he moved very little. Cub hovered his hand over Harry’s shoulder and said to him, “Let me try.”

Harry was more than happy to let him have a go at it, but something in his voice made Harry hesitate. He couldn't help but feel as though Cub had been through something terrible, but he shook that feeling off and moved back to let Cub try.

“Annabeth’s fine. She’s alright. You're alright. Nobody here is going to hurt you,” Cub’s lips twitched, but Harry couldn't catch the emotion. It looked slightly desperate but it was mixed with too many other emotions for Harry to be sure. 

Harry was a bit shocked when the boy actually started to calm down. His breathing evened out, and he seemed to be waking up. Cub repeated his words again, and then, before the boy could awaken fully, he drew back into the corner of the cell. Like he was scared this new boy would attack him or something. Harry filed this information on Cub away for later. 

✶✶✶

Percy awoke from his nightmare. He could have sworn he heard a voice soothing him, but he hadn't recognized the voice’s owner. He put it off as his imagination until he opened his eyes.

He was in some type of cell. It looked quite solid, and he didn't see any way that showed escape. There were two boys looking at him. The older looking of the two was staring at him with concern, but his eyes also kept flicking to the younger boy who was sitting in the corner. Percy assumed that he must be concerned for both of them. He wasn't sure why, but it could have had something to do with his nightmare.

The younger boy made him shudder. His eyes were cold and nearly blank. They looked almost haunted to Percy. But despite his blank expression, Percy could just barely make out understanding.

Percy rubbed his eyes to try to rid himself of the sleepiness he felt.

The older boy with the bright green eyes said, “I'm Harry, and this is … Cub”

Percy noticed the British accent and the pause before the odd name and guessed, “Fake name? And, are you British.”

Harry said, “Yeah. He wouldn't tell me his real name. And, also yes. Where are you from?”

Cub, Percy thought he could have picked a better name, said, “He’s from New York. You shouldn't tell us your name either. We’re locked in a cell. Obviously, someone put us here, and that person could still be listening from the other side of that door.”

Percy decided he liked this kid. His intelligence reminded him of Annabeth. He hoped she was alright. He couldn't place this boy’s accent though; it was almost a mix of several different places. 

Harry, looking exasperated, said, “At least give us something to call you though.”

Percy thought for a minute. What could he tell them to call him? Seaweed Brain would bring up too many questions, especially because he wasn't sure if these guys were demigods or not.

Percy was saved from coming up with a nickname when the cell door swung open.


	2. Confessions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Slight reference to torture. There will be actual torture (not super graphic) in later chapters, so that's a warning for now. I'll let you know when we get there.

**_Previously:_ **

_ Percy was saved from coming up with a nickname when the cell door swung open. _

 

Percy watched as a beautiful woman entered the cell. He noticed that Cub nervously took a step back and stood tensed by the wall, whereas Harry leaned forward in anticipation, likely of discovering where they were and why. He himself couldn't decide which he should be doing.

The woman hand curly blonde hair down to her hips, and blue eyes that seemed to sparkle even in the dim light of the cell. When she began to speak, her soft British voice sounded like music to Percy's ears, "You needn't concern yourself with inventing a false name Mister Jackson. We already know who you are," she turned to Cub and said, "And while I commend your wisdom, your fake name is also unnecessary, Mister Rider."

Rider tensed slightly, just enough for Percy to tell, before adopting a more devil-may-care expression, complete with a smirk and all, but Percy recognized the mental armor for what it was. Though, why this woman knowing his name caused the reaction, he wasn't sure. 

"Well, whoopee," he said, "You figured out my name. Good on you. Mind telling us why you've brought us here now?"

"Not at all Mister Rider," she said, not even pausing from Rider's violent reaction. She said down as she said, "Please, take your seats. I am Natalie, and I head an operation that wants to- I believe the simplest terms would be- improve the world. There is another group that wishes to destroy our progress and discredit us in the eyes of those we help, and we need you three to help stop them."

✶✶✶

Alex instantly started looking for signs of deception. It didn't take long for his mind to start throwing out irregularities in what he knew so far. To start with, they were being held in a ten-foot by ten-foot cell, after being totally stripped of his weapons. Not only that, but they hadn't been given anything by way of comfort. And, besides, "improve" was a matter of opinion. Some people think killing half the world's population would be an improvement. Not to mention, this woman was using his name as her weapon, and she seemed to have to force her face to show emotion.

Now Alex had fought evil villains before, many of whom were psychopaths or sociopaths, and this woman had the emotionless box ticked no problem.

He was planning to keep the information to himself and share it with his cellmates later- he could hope there were no cameras-, when Harry said, "Yeah. See, I don't buy that. You've given us no reason to trust you, and the conditions you've provided for us are the opposite of welcoming, so forgive me for not falling head over heels in my non-existent urge to help your cause.."

Natalie opened her mouth to answer, but Alex cut in before she could do so, "What do you need us to do to help?"

Harry looked about to protest his voiced agreement with her, but a look from Alex silenced him. Alex knew that a person that was unable to feel emotion would probably end up using torture as a means of persuasion- and perhaps that would garner a semblance of pleasure from her-, and as much as he knew she was lying, he couldn't afford for her to know that so early. She could find out when Alex escaped.

"We need you to assist us in putting this group out of power," she said flatly, "Nothing overly difficult just make them unable to continue on their quest," Alex noted the way she referred to the other group as being on a mission and not her own, "You can do this yourself or bring them to us, whichever you prefer," Alex began making the outlines of a plan, which was shattered by her next sentence, "Of course we will send some of our finest fighters to accompany you."

It appeared that she planned for them trying to escape under the guise of helping. He didn't let his facial expression waver as he replied, "Will you let us discuss our options as a group? You have given us much to think about."

"Take as much time as you require, but remember we need to form our retaliation with haste," Natalie said as she stood up and left.

Percy opened his mouth to speak, but Alex held up a hand to silence him. He waited ten seconds before he heard footsteps headed away from the cell, and he stood up to start inspecting the walls for bugs; he wanted their escape to go as smoothly as possible.

✶✶✶

Harry watched as Cub, or Rider he supposed -he really should ask him for his first name now-, scampered around the room looking for something. Harry wasn't quite sure what it was Rider was looking for, but after a few minutes of searching, he sighed in relief and sat down by the other boys, but Harry noted that he sat in the corner furthest from the door.

"It's clear," he said.

Harry knew, logically, that it wasn't really vital at the time, but he decided he would ask anyway. They weren't really crunched for time, "What were you looking for?"

Rider gave him another one of those looks that said how much of an idiot he thought Harry was before answering, "Bugs."

What? Bugs? Harry thought Hermione might have mentioned something similar at some point, but he definitely couldn't remember now. Rider must have caught his perplexed expression because he continued, "Listening devices."

"Oh," Harry said; though he still wasn't entirely sure what he meant, it gave him a better idea, "Anyways. I'm assuming you guys won't have any objections sharing your first names now."

"Percy," the elder of the two said.

Rider hesitated momentarily before complying, "Alex."

Harry nodded at the information. Then, because he really wanted to know if the other boys were somehow wizards and just didn't know him, but wasn't quite willing to be thought of as crazy if they weren't, he asked, "So, do you guys have any idea why you're here?"

Alex raised his eyebrows in a manner that clearly told Harry he wasn't planning on answering, but Percy said sarcastically, "Oh, I don't know. Maybe it's something to do with the fact my dad is the god of the sea."

✶✶✶

The words came out before Percy had completely processed them. To be honest, he hadn't really noticed he'd said something that might be considered strange until Harry's eyebrows scrunched up in confusion, and Alex's head shot around to scan Percy. It seemed almost to be x-raying him and trying to work him out.

Right as Percy was about to respond to make sure they didn't think he was crazy, Harry suddenly got an almost gleeful look on his face and he said, "That's Poseidon right?"

"Oh. Um, Yeah," Percy said, feeling slightly flustered since he hadn't expected for Harry to say that, and he was really confused as to why knowing that made Harry so excited. Could Harry be a demigod? Percy shook his head. It was unlikely. Percy saw Alex lean back and shift his probing eyes onto Harry, and he figured there must have been something that happened before he woke up, that would explain Alex's calculating look on Harry.

Percy watched Alex fiddle with his hands in his lap, before Alex said, "Are you a part of a secret society?"

Percy watched as Harry's eyes widened in surprise, and at the same time, they said, "Say what?"

"I said, 'Are you a part of a secret society?' It's either that or it's just been a heck of a long time since you went to any kind of common curriculum schooling."

Harry floundered for a minute before he said, "No. Well, kind of, but not really. Well, I guess it is sorta like a secret society, but it isn't like a cult or anything."

Percy furrowed his eyebrows. What? That was so confusing.

Alex must have been of the same opinion because he said, "Well, thanks, that sure clears it right up," but it took Percy twenty seconds too long to realize it was sarcasm. 

✶✶✶

Harry bit his lip in thought. Maybe he could tell them. The woman who came in did say that she already knew who they were. He doubted she wouldn't know about him being a wizard. He started to talk before he could change his mind, "I'm a wizard."

_ Merlin, that was stupid,  _ Harry thought. He clenched his jaw in anticipation of them calling him crazy, which they were sure to do, since they were most likely Muggles, but instead he watched as both other boys said, "Oh-kay?" in a way that was more questioning than anything, like they didn't find the declaration that he was a wizard odd.

"Ok?" Harry parrotted, "You don't think I'm crazy."

Percy raised his eyebrows, "I just told you I was the son of Poseidon, and you think I'd find you crazy for having magical powers? I am curious about how your powers work, but that is probably best saved for another time."

Both boys turned to Alex. He sighed and rolled his eyes, "I was already figuring you were part of the Wizarding World. I had this run in with them once." He shuddered, "It wasn't very pleasant, to say the least, but I figured you were a wizard before Percy woke up. I was just waiting for you to confirm it. Besides, believe me, I've heard weirder declarations," he turned to look at Percy, "I'm not sure about you, but I'm guessing it's something to do with Greek Mythology. Maybe you're a demigod. It sounds like that's what you're claiming anyway."

"It is," Percy replied. Alex shrugged like he hadn't been wanting a response; he had seemed fairly sure about his hypothesis. Harry scrunched up his eyebrows. So Percy was a… demigod. Harry wasn't really sure what that meant. Was it just that Percy was the son of a god? He must have overlooked that tidbit in his excitement for having known who Poseidon was. He supposed that explained why he was here. It was with this thought that Harry realized Alex had never told them why he was here. Was that intentional? Had he been diverting their attention in hopes of not having to tell them? Well, he was out of luck, because Harry wanted to know why he was here.

"And you Alex," Harry said pointedly, watching as Alex's knowing eyes narrowed in what he assumed was with an expectation of what Harry was about to ask, "Why do you think you're here?"

✶✶✶

Percy turned to Alex in interest. He wanted to know the answer to that question as well. He watched Alex's face and noticed that it took on a slightly more defensive tone, and a slight hint of fear. Percy wasn't sure if he was imagining the change or not because it was very faint.

Alex answered, in a voice that said he clearly didn't want to talk about it, "I don't know."

Percy paused. They both told him why they were here, and he didn't trust him enough to tell them. He looked at Harry who shook his head. Percy thought he was probably telling him not to push, but no one who knew Percy well would call him a person who listened to others. That was probably why he was missing the cues Alex was giving that it was something he didn't want to talk about. He got that part, but he was choosing to ignore the part of his brain that was suggesting that maybe the memory was painful for the younger boy.

But, as usual, Percy's temper got the best of him, "What the Hades, dude? We told you why we're here, and you're not gonna tell us why you're here?"

Alex visibly drew in a breath, probably to control his own voice because his voice was almost entirely monotone with only slight hints of annoyance as he retorted, "I didn't ask you to do that?"

His answer just made Percy angrier. He jumped to his feet and nearly shouted, "Yes. You did. You asked me if I was a demigod."

Alex rolled his eyes, not even fazed by Percy's anger, which didn't help Percy's mood in the slightest, "I wasn't asking. I was already confident you were. I was just pointing out that I knew. Your confirmation of the fact was wholly unnecessary."

Percy didn't understand how Alex was staying so calm, but he didn't like it. He felt his fists clench up. He took a step forwards. He saw Alex tense and start to draw his arms up in a defensive posture, and Harry stepped forwards with a placating expression.

Before Percy could say his next response since he wasn't actually going to hit Alex -he wasn't that mad  _ yet.  _ Really. He told himself _ \-  _ Harry said, "Woah, mate. Calm down, please. We don't really need to be fighting right now. We should be focused on more important things. Maybe like escaping."

Percy released his fists and backed up. He finally noticed that Alex looked more than a bit defensive. He looked on edge. He waited until Percy put a little bit more space between them before lowering his guard. Percy suddenly got a strange urge to apologize, and he muttered, "Sorry."

✶✶✶

Alex turned from Percy, not wanting the other boy to know he had bothered him as much as he had. Alex didn't even want to admit to himself that it had bothered him. This kid was barely older them him. Alex fought psychopaths for a living. Well, he wasn't really paid until he was legal, but MI6 gave him some money to spend so he supposed that counted. He also trained with the SAS. After the first time, he returned to them for training between missions. He had a tutor that gave him his school education. There was a bit of work to catch up from all of the school he missed, but he managed. How would these two boys understand all the deaths he had caused? How could they possibly understand that he had to kill some of them to save his own life? And, besides, that was if they even believed him to start with.

"You should tell us though, Alex. We won't judge," Harry comment cut through Alex's thoughts perfectly as though he had been reading Alex's mind. Alex hoped that wasn't the case. Could wizards read minds? And if they could, didn't they need wands to do magic or something? He thought the wizard who had tortured him had a wand. He said some words that sounded based in Latin, too, but Alex was fairly confident he had been pointing a wand at him before the pain started and he could no longer pay attention.

Alex decided he would be vague and maybe they would take the hint and leave it. He said, "I have a knack for ticking off the wrong people."

He almost laughed at how true it was. Unfortunately, Percy at least was not satisfied with that description. Alex had doubted they would accept it without question, but it was worth a shot. Harry also seemed curious, if his look of perplexity was anything to go by. Percy said, "Why? What is it about you that made these people want you in their mission for "improving the world'." The sarcasm about their goal was obvious, and Alex was mildly impressed with his intuitive question.

He sighed and decided to just say it and get it over with, "I'm a spy."

✶✶✶

_ Huh? _ Was Harry's first thought.  _ At least that explains the paranoia. _

"I didn't know the government employed kids. Is that even legal?" Percy asked, finally sitting back down, and the idea of Alex, a kid who didn't look any older than 17, was a spy. Weren't spies put in danger a lot? He found himself feeling anxious for Alex, and the concern growing in his chest confused him. Was this what it felt like to have a younger sibling, feeling panicky at the idea of them being hurt? He'd only known Alex for less than 24 hours. Was it normal to feel this close to him already?

Alex sighed in what sounded like exasperation, but he thought he saw a slight bit of pain and hurt in his expression as he said, "No. I doubt it was legal, but the government's above the law didn't you know that" Alex took a deep meditative breath, "We need to make a plan."

"What?" Harry asked, confused by the apparent non sequitur.

He watched Alex roll his eyes, though he didn't really seem that annoyed, and say, "Well, I don't know about you, but I for one would prefer to check out of this cell, as nice as it is, as soon as possible."

"Agreed," said Percy, and Harry nodded his head in agreement. He would gladly get out of here. He wasn't sure he really wanted to go back to hiding away in Grimmauld Place to keep away from the press, and even his friends, but he definitely didn't want to stay here. Maybe he could visit Alex and Percy, he already seemed to have a lot in common with the both of them, and they didn't know about his fame.

Alex leaned forward and said, "So… I was thinking…" and the words of his plan started to paint the picture of their escape in Harry's mind.


	3. Chapter 3

Percy's dream was odd, even by demigod standards. It was dark. Very dark. So much so that the only thing he could see was a woman, but she appeared in complete focus. She was young. Percy guessed younger than thirty. Her dark brown hair blew around as though there was a wind coming from somewhere, but Percy couldn't feel anything. She was facing away from him, laughing, though what at, Percy couldn't be sure.

When she spoke, it startled him because she wasn't speaking to him, "Don't be an idiot Zaynah. I thought you were supposed to be the daughter of the goddess of wisdom."

She paused, almost as though waiting for a response before continuing, "Oh. Nevermind. I thought Erik was going to tell you what I was doing?"

The pause was briefer that time, as though the listener had just given a short answer, "I'm trying to contact the demigod. We need to find them."

Percy started. She was contacting him. Why? How? Where is this place? The questions went into his brain, then out again, so he could tune back into the woman talking.

"... know he must have betrayed us. We need to find them. If  _ Natalie Harper _ kills any of the boys or turns them to her side, we're done for."

She paused again, "It doesn't matter you heard the prophecy. 'But if even one strays away…' Wait. Sorry, Zaynah, I think he's here. We'll talk later," She turned slowly until she was facing Percy, and he found himself looking into her deep blue eyes as she said, "Hello, Percy. I'm Leah Gibson. Are you with the others?"

Percy wondered if she knew how vague she was being. He knew that he wouldn't have understood what she was asking if he hadn't he just heard that conversation, "You mean, Alex and Harry?"

"Yes," Leah said looking relieved, "We're looking for you, but we don't have any clues. We will find you though."

"Why?" Percy asked. He really wasn't sure who this, "we" was, but he wanted to know why they wanted to find him, Alex, and Harry.

"There is a prophecy," Percy shuddered at the word. Another prophecy that would control his life, "that says we need the three of you to hold any hope of defeating Natalie and her group. Sorry, do you know who Natalie is?"

Percy nodded, of course he did, and she continued, "Ok, well, one of our group mates, who was supposed to ask Harry, Alex, and yourself to come and speak with us, changed sides and brought you to her."

"Why do you need to defeat them?" Percy asked, wondering just how bad the group was that had him.

"They are a mix of people who have problems with the three worlds," She said simply.

"Three worlds?" Percy parroted more perplexed than he was before. He'd rather fight Gaea any day than try to puzzle out this conversation. _ Wait _ , he thought,  _ I take that back. _

"The wizarding world, the gods' world, and the mortal world. Well, really the intelligence agencies, but they are mortal basically. I'm a witch, but Natalie is a squib," Percy furrowed his eyebrows. Did this girl say Natalie was a squid? What? "so she hates the wizarding world, and me by default. She's also a psychopath," Leah turned as though listening to someone else, "Oh right," She turned back to Percy, "Zaynah, a friend of mine, --she's a daughter of Athena by the way-- reminded me you probably don't know what a squib is. It is a person, born to magical parents, who doesn't have magic."

She seemed to be waiting so Percy nodded his understanding, and she continued, "Her army is made up of several people who all have negative relations with at least one of the worlds. We don't know yet who all of them are. Make sure you and the others stay semi complacent. We may not know everything, but she is known to work with Jim Melton. He's a torture expert who is fascinated with causing pain; The chatter says he trained under Dr. Three. Oh, that man was a psychopath," Dr. Three? Who is that? "Melton doesn't actually have anything to do with Natalie's battle. She just keeps him around to torture people who annoy her. If you get a chance to escape, take it. I don't know how soon we'll be able to find the three of you. But, I repeat, be cautious. I don't know how patient they will be."

Percy thought this over. It seemed logical to him. Well, pretty logical. Annabeth was better at that kind of thing, but he supposed Leah hadn't told him anything to make him not trust her. Besides, she seemed so excitable, a complete flip from the nearly monotone voice of Natalie. He could talk it over with Harry and Alex later when he woke up. As that thought crossed his mind, he noticed the increasingly irritating shaking of his shoulders, as though someone was indeed trying to wake him up.

Leah smiled at him and said, "You need to go now. Your friends are trying to wake you. Be safe."

She snapped her fingers, and Percy's eyes opened, only to find Harry's eyes less than a foot away from his face.

✶✶✶

Harry hadn't been expecting for Percy's eyes to open. At least, not at the moment that they did, so when Percy's eyes flew open without any of the usual flutterings that came with waking up, Harry would admit he might have shouted a bit. But, hey, he can hardly be blamed, it was a shocking experience, or so he tried to tell himself.

He scowled at Percy who started to laugh at him as he pushed himself into a sitting position. Then, he noticed the light snickering coming from behind him. It made his lips quirk into a grin. Alex's laugh sounded like that of a person who hasn't laughed in a long time. Harry found that he didn't even care that it was at his expense that Alex was laughing.

"Seriously, dude," Percy said, "what were you doing in my face?"

"I was trying to wake you up," Harry said in a mock irritated voice. He wasn't really annoyed; he was just trying to lighten the mood.

Percy's grin suddenly fell from his face, as he took on a more serious expression. Harry cocked his head to the side in a silent question of what was the matter. Percy said, "I had a really strange dream."

"A dream?" Harry questioned, turning around to look at Alex, whose face was perfectly blank but was staring intently at Percy. Harry wondered if maybe Percy had visions like he used to have of Voldemort. Harry shuddered. He, so, did not need the reminder of the horrible visions he had when he was a kid.

Percy bit his lip for a moment before saying, "There was this girl named Leah. She said she was like a witch or something. She was trying to contact me. Basically just to tell me that she and her group were coming to rescue us."

Alex, who had until then been standing silently in the corner, spoke suddenly, making Harry, who hadn't been expecting it, jump, "What did she say exactly? It's important that we understand her motives."

Percy rubbed his head as if trying to recall and said, "Well, she said this Natalie has a group of people who have issues with some three worlds or something. I think she said that meant my world, um… the wizarding world, and the uh... mortal world. But, then she said something about intelligence worlds. I wasn't really following."

Harry knew that he wasn't following either. Intelligence world? What did that even mean? Luckily, Alex chose that moment to add, "She meant my world. Spies. Assassins. Soldiers. Did she say anything about who is working with this Natalie lady?"

"No," Percy said, then he seemed to pause and think for a moment, "Actually, she mentioned this Jim guy. I think his last name was like Martin or Mellman. Something like that."

Harry heard Alex suck in his breath. He turned around to see that Alex's face had gone very pale. His hands started to twitch a bit as he said in a voice barely over a whisper, "Melton."

"Yeah that was it," Percy said apparently not noticing that Alex looked terrified, "He said something about him and some dude named Dr. Three."

Harry was worried for Alex. He was nearly shaking, and was leaning on the wall for support. Since Alex didn't really seem like the emotional type of person, this kind of worried Harry. Ok. More than kind of. Before Percy could continue what he was going to say, Harry said to Alex, "Do you know him, Alex?"

✶✶✶

Alex winced.  _ Did he know Jim Melton? _ How could he not? He remembered every minute he spent with Jim Melton.

 

_ September 12, 2009 _

_ Alex sat worriedly in his cell. It had been nine days. Nine days since SCORPIA killed the Pleasures. And, it had been six days since he went after them. He was doing good. At least seven key members had been taken out and countless foot soldiers. He had enlisted the help of various people who had problems with SCORPIA because he obviously wouldn't have managed it alone. Most, he did do alone. He just needed some help with the getting in part.  _

_ But eventually, they caught him. He knew they would. He had just hoped he would manage to take down a few more board members than he had. Now though, he was captured, and he figured it was only a matter of time before they killed him. They had to know he had the luck of the devil. Anyone who had tried to prolong his death before had lived to regret it. Or, in some cases, they hadn't. _

_ When he heard heavy footsteps making their way to his cell, he straightened his spine and prepared for the pain he knew was soon to come. Two guards came into view holding automatic weapons, that Alex knew would severely limit his ability to escape. One guard unlocked the door and the other kept his gun firmly fixed on Alex. _

_ "Come," the first guard said in heavily accented English, "Dr. Three wishes to see you now." _

_ Alex had been anticipating a quick death, but he had heard of Dr. Three before, during his time training on Malagosto. He was a torture expert. Surely Alex didn't have any information they would want. MI6 never told him anything. They always expected him to figure the details out himself. The only possibility that laid itself in Alex's mind was that they wanted him to suffer. In that moment, he decided he wouldn't give them the satisfaction of hearing him scream. He would survive and live to see his escape or rescue, whichever came first. He didn't know it then, but this promise to himself would be the only thing keeping him from falling into insanity in the two months to come. Even if he wouldn't manage to stay true to it all the time. _

_ The first guard blindfolded him and grabbed him by the shoulders to lead him, presumably to Dr. Three. Alex tried to keep track of the turns they made, but after dozens of turns, several staircases, and an elevator, he decided that it was hopeless. Suddenly, the guard pushed him into a room and removed his blindfold. _

_ Alex recognized Dr. Three. His short, build and Chinese descent were clearly recognizable from his time as a student on Malagosto. The young man next to him though, who had hair as jet-black as Dr. Three's own hair, was an unknown, and unrecognizable to Alex, and that made him more nervous than the idea of facing a known torture expert. _

_ Dr. Three snapped his fingers and the guards tied his hands above his head so that his feet just barely touched the floor. Dr. Three snapped again and the guards left the room, but Alex heard the lock click as they left, and he heard their footsteps stop just outside the door. _

_ "Hello, Alex," Dr. Three said, in a falsely pleasant voice, "I'm not sure if you remember me. I'm Dr. Three. We met on Malagosto." _

_ Alex remembered. That was for sure. One of Alex's instructors had decided to sign him up for a course on torture, and Dr. Three had decided to use Alex to demonstrate. It hadn't been too bad, but Alex had been worried at the time that he would be drowned, permanently injured, or injected with something that would impact him for life. All that had really come of it was a sprained wrist, shortness of breath, and a slightly high feeling that came from whatever drug he had been injected with. Alex wasn't the only person to have had this treatment from Dr. Three; though, thinking back, it might have been Julia Rothman's influence that caused Three to choose Alex over all of the other trainees present. _

_ "Tsk. Tsk. Alex," Three said, walking over to Alex and standing right in his face, "Didn't anyone ever teach you to answer when people spoke to you. It's quite rude to ignore me when I am speaking to you. I would've thought Uncle Ian would've taught you better." _

_ Three reached his hand up as though to caress Alex's face, but he knew he didn't want to give this man the satisfaction of hearing him give in. He twisted his hand so that he could get a hold on the chains holding him up. Then, he lifted his body into the air and sent one foot flying at Dr. Three's nose and the other, at his chest. _

_ Three stumbled back and wiped the blood from his nose. The younger man stepped forward seething, but he stopped when Dr. Three, who was now hunched over holding his ribs waved him away. He whistled, and the guards reentered the room. _

_ "Feet," he rasped, still out of breath from Alex's kick to his lungs. Alex watched with trepidation as the guards approached him and secured his feet together and to the ground. A part of Alex wished he would've controlled his reaction. Having his feet unsecured might come in handy later for an escape, but he couldn't quite shake the pleasure from causing pain to his soon to be torturer. He never knew when he'd get that chance again. _

_ Three snapped and the guards left the room. _

_ "I was hoping that these restraints wouldn't be necessary. Did you really have to make it harder on yourself?" Dr. Three said as he walked up to Alex, patronizingly, as he ran his fingers down the side of his cheek. _

_ Alex pulled his head away from Three's hand and snapped, "Go to Hell." _

_ "Oh, Alex, I'm afraid that you're already there," Dr. Three said with a condescending smile. Alex felt that statement couldn't be truer. He gestured for the younger man, and said, "Allow me to introduce you to my nephew, Jim Melton." _

_ Melton stepped forwards and Alex could see the similarities between them. Only, where Three exuded a forced calmness in his presence, Melton's was darker, more cruel and angry, and it Alex's opinion, someone who knew the ins and outs of torture was nowhere near the level of threat of a person who intended pain to him. At least, Dr. Three knew when to stop to keep him from dying. Whether or not that was a good thing would remain to be seen. _

_ "Uncle has been teaching me the art of torture," Melton told Alex, "He's going to let me practice on you. Isn't that wonderful news?" _

_ "Not really," Alex said, to cover up his worry about this overeager man torturing him, "It means I'll have to spend more time looking at your ugly face." _

_ Melton closed the distance between them before Alex could prepare for it and slapped him across the face. Then, he took his hands and placed them around Alex's neck and squeezed. Alex started to choke. Melton held on until Alex's vision was almost completely black and Dr. Three pulled Melton back and said, "That's enough, Jim." _

_ Melton released Alex's neck, and Alex gasped for breath and began to cough. _

_ "Never!" Melton yelled, "Never insult me again! If you do, it will be the last thing you ever do!" _

 

"Alex!"

Alex was startled out of his memory by the sound of Harry's voice, which had no place in the flashback he was having. He took deep faltering breaths to try and calm himself down. It had been a long time since he had a flashback. Granted, it had also been a long time since he thought of the man who had tortured him for two months. If there was ever a time that he didn't need to have a flashback though, now was the time. He could already see on Harry's face how worried he seemed to be. Even Percy was looking concerned for Alex, and they had nearly gotten in a fight the night before.

✶✶✶

Harry watched Alex as he came out of his shock, or flashback. This must've been the reason for him being so skilled at bringing Percy out of his flashback. Harry waited until Alex seemed a little bit calmer before taking a small step towards him hoping to offer him some kind of comfort, but Harry froze as Alex flinched backward. 

He hadn't expected a reaction like that from the younger boy. Harry remembered when he used to be prone to reacting like that, but that had been back before he met his friends, who had strange affinities for hugging him, something that the Dursley's had never done. He had only ever really reacted that way while at the Dursleys' or occasionally at school, but only during the first couple of weeks away from the Dursleys' or when someone startled him, and sometimes when he spoke to Professor Snape. He'd pretty much quit having them after his 3rd year when Harry had the threat of Sirius to hang over his relatives' heads. He conveniently forgot to tell them when Sirius died.

But, none of that helped Harry work out why Alex had reacted that way to him. He watched in shock as Alex's face went from pale and terrified to perfectly blank. 

Alex took a deep breath, straightened his back, and said, "Sorry about that. Yeah. We met once."

Harry strained his memory to remember what they had been talking about before Alex had withdrawn to memory, and remembered having asked him whether or not he knew the man Percy had been talking about. Was it him that had caused this reaction in Alex, or something else entirely. Harry couldn't think of another reason for Alex's flashback, but anything was possible.

Before Harry could ask Alex what had been the matter, Percy said, softly, "What did he do?"

Harry looked to Alex, perplexed by the question and noticed the look in his eyes. It was haunted, dead, as though he had seen a war and lived. 

Alex was silent for a good minute, before saying in a low voice, "He dabbled in just about every weapon you can think of, but it's fine. I'm over it. I've been through much worse than what he did to me. He was just the first," Alex's voice got so quiet during the end of his reply that Harry had to strain to hear it, but if there was one good thing about a ten-by-ten-foot cell, it was that the walls echoed.

Suddenly, Harry understood. Alex was a spy. Spies gathered information on people, and if they were to be caught, they might be tortured. He remembered Hermione being tortured by Bellatrix when they were caught by the snatchers. Had Alex been through something like that.

Harry got angry, at that moment. Angry at their captors. Angry at whoever decided it was a good idea to let Alex be a spy. And, most of all, angry at the people who had hurt the younger boy. Before he could consider the repercussions, he screamed, "Let us out of here! Why do you cowards think you can keep us here!? We aren't stupid! We know that you-"

Harry was cut off as Alex put his hand over his mouth, "Are you an idiot," he hissed, "The plan. Remember? We don't need them to suspect us yet."

Harry flushed. He hadn't let his temper go like that for a long time, and it made him slightly embarrassed. He muttered, "Sorry," but Alex had already released him and retreated back to his corner.

Before Harry could say anything more-- and he really wasn't sure what he would've said, so that was probably for the best-- the door swung open and he and Percy jumped back to avoid being hit by the door.

✶✶✶

Percy stared up at the man who entered the cell. He looked normal. Slightly overweight, brown hair, and brown eyes. All and all nothing special about his appearance. The only extraordinary thing about him was that there was a look of anger directed at Percy. Sure, he tried to mask it, but Percy could see it underneath the false pleasure.

The man smiled and said, "Now, now Harry. That's no way to hold control of your temper now is it."

Percy scowled and watched as Harry rolled his eyes, and Alex narrowed his eyes into a dead stare that gave Percy chills, and Percy had faced some of the worst monsters imaginable.  _ For crying out loud, _ Percy thought,  _ I fought Tartarus. _

"What do you want?" Harry asked in a snappish voice.

The man clicked his tongue and said with a chuckle, "Temper, temper. I'm Matthew, and it has come to our attention that you might require… additional persuasion to join our cause. Now, I'll admit, we weren't entirely truthful earlier."

Percy snorted and Matthew glared at him and said, "But you must understand our cause."

Evidently, Matthew's flipping between 'kind' man to anger with Percy hadn't gone unnoticed by the other boys. Alex gave Percy a strange look, almost questioning, but Percy just shrugged; he didn't know what was going on. 

"We have all been hurt by the world. She has betrayed us," his voice took on a slightly bitter tone, but it was soon gone, "The world hurt you too. You've been forced to do horrible things. Prophecies," Percy shuttered and saw Harry do the same. Had Harry's life been ruined by prophecies too, "Blackmail." Percy didn't realize what Matthew meant until he noticed him looking intently at Alex, who was keeping his face intentionally blank. Not that it really helped Percy figure out what it meant. He tried to think what blackmail could have to do with spying. Maybe Alex hadn't wanted to be a spy. He decided he would ask him, eventually.

"You have no reason to want to help the people of the world. No reason but the sense of responsibility they have bestowed on you. You feel like you have to help them, but you don't. You don't need to help these people. We can help you get out from under their influence."

"No," Percy said, "We're good. Thanks." Like he was going to join these crazy people.

Matthew glared at Percy again, "You couldn't even understand. Your father claimed you. Your father cares about you at least," something buzzed on his wrist and he took a deep breath to calm himself. Was this a warning from Natalie, telling him he was making it too personal, and that he was doing the opposite of persuading Percy? Or was it because he had all but told him that he was an unclaimed demigod? 

"I'm leaving," Matthew said flatly, and Percy remembered Alex's plan.

Matthew turned to leave. Right as the door swung open to let him out, Alex jumped at him. He hit a pressure point on his neck and watched him drop. Alex smiled. Well, half-smiled at least.

"Let's go," Harry said, "We're out of here."

The three boys went out of the room and turned right, the opposite way that the guards had gone when they left, or so Alex said he had heard. Their escape was coming. He would be back to Annabeth in no time to finish his Senior year. Well, the Annabeth part was what he was really excited about.


	4. Chapter 4

Alex thought they had to be getting close to the exit. They had been walking for nearly ten minutes, and they still hadn't come across an exit or any guards. Both thoughts unnerved Alex. The only reasons that Alex could think of for there being no guards was that either they were understaffed, (which was unlikely. Surely there were many people with issues against MI6, the Wizarding World, and the demigod world) or they thought it impossible for them to escape. This reason brought up several new possibilities, most of which didn't leave a pleasant taste in Alex's mouth.

The only situation in which this would've been a positive thing would be if they had managed to outsmart the system and were about to escape. Unfortunately, the other possibilities were far more likely. It was possible that there was no way out of the compound they were in but by a secret door that they would never find. Also probable was the possibility that they would have to go through the quarters where the guards lived to escape. But, most likely of all, was the possibility that they were being allowed to escape, and there were guards waiting to apprehend them once they reached a certain point in the maze of hallways they were traipsing through. He decided that it would probably be for the best if he didn't share his concerns with Harry and Percy, not knowing what kind of impact the pessimistic news would have on his fellow escapees.

Alex paused as they came to another fork in the path. Alex thought cynically, _And here to the left we have a dimly lit hallway with pale grey walls and a tiled floor, and to the right… oh, look, another dimly lit hallway with pale grey walls and a tiled floor._ _Joy_ Alex peered at Harry and Percy in a silent askance of which direction they thought they should turn. Harry simply shrugged his shoulders, but Percy, perhaps noticing the dark, semi-hopeless, fully-pessimistic look Alex knew was present in his eyes, suggested that perhaps they would try to turn left. Not that there was anything so great about turning left Alex thought with a scowl.

As they turned, Percy grabbed Alex's wrist, and all three boys stopped, Harry looking at Percy in a confused fashion, and Percy staring at Alex in a way that told him that Percy had a suspicion as to where his thoughts had been going. Alex himself was just trying to avoid panicking. Certainly, he seemed to be getting flashbacks much more often recently. Perhaps he was still jumpy from the mention of Jim. Whatever it was, he definitely didn't like it.

"What is it? What's the matter?" Percy asked Alex, and Alex sighed. Evidently, he had forgotten that these two boys weren't like the civilian boys he had gone to Brooklands with. These two boys had obviously been through some serious crap themselves, and for Alex, who almost always worked alone, that was a hard fact to remember.

"It's too quiet," Alex said softly, "If this Natalie knows so much about us, then she would've had more guards. We haven't seen a single bloody soul since we knocked out that Matthew guy."

\-----

Harry looked around, only just noticing that fact. Sure, he'd considered that they were being extraordinarily lucky in not having encountered any guards, but he was just assuming they had chosen the correct paths and were managing to avoid them. Everything looked the same anyways. The idea that Alex had just suggested hadn't really lodged itself into his mind as a possibility.

He hoped Alex was wrong, but in the back corner of his mind, he knew the odds of him being right were far more likely. He just hoped that if they were caught, they didn't meet the man who Percy had said was a part of Natalie's group that liked to torture people. The idea in and of itself was bad enough -- no one likes to meet a torturer -- but what really got Harry was thinking about how pale Alex's face had been when Percy brought the man up. More than anything Harry was worried at the impact such a meeting would have on the younger boy. Harry got a very prominent feeling that, even though Alex had said he was over it, that was far from the truth. Anything that causes that much of a reaction couldn’t be something that he had managed to work through.

They continued to walk, but before they traveled more than twenty feet in the direction Percy had chosen, they came to a door. The younger boys, who had been walking in front of Harry, paused, and the three boys shared meaningful looks. Well, mostly Percy and Alex; Harry just tried to convey to the other boys that he had no clue what it was they were trying to tell him, but the other two seemed to come to a conclusion. Perhaps they were more accustomed to these silent conversations. Alex shrugged at Percy after rolling his eyes at Harry. Ignoring whatever the shrug had meant, Harry figured that Alex, at least, had managed to gather what he had been trying to say.

Percy opened the door. Him and Alex both tensed and readied themselves for action. Harry considered preparing himself to fight as well, but then he remembered that he didn't have his wand with him, and his hand to hand fighting abilities were next to non-existent.

Harry's first thought was,  _ Why is it so bloody dark in there?, _ but that thought was soon followed by,  _ Yes! That must mean there aren't any guards. _

The three boys entered the room slowly, almost hesitantly. They couldn't have been more than a few steps into the room when three sharp whistling noises shot through the air, followed by a stinging pain in his neck. Quick movements from Alex and Percy told him that they, also, had been hit by whatever had hit him.

Feeling sluggish, Harry reached up to grab whatever was in his neck. What he pulled out looked like a dart, not that he had much experience with them, but he thought he had heard once that muggles used them the way that Wizards used stupify. Considering he was still standing, he hoped they might not be as effective. Right as the thought crossed his mind, he stumbled, so much for that.

Suddenly the lights flashed on, making Harry grab his head in pain. When his eyes better adjusted to the light, though, they were starting to blur from the effects of the dart. He saw a blob that looked very much like Natalie and scowled.

"Oh, boys. And here I thought we were getting through to you. I'm afraid you've left me no choice but to resort to more _ persuasive  _ ways of convincing you to join us," He heard the words as she said them, but the longer she spoke the harder and harder it was for him to process what was being said. Through his spotted vision Harry could make out the outline of Natalie walking towards Alex.

Harry started to fall to the ground. His last coherent thought before he blacked out was, _ I should've told my stupid brain to shut up. Clearly, it must have jinxed us. _

\-----

Percy woke with a groan, blinking his eyes rapidly to drive out the headache building behind his eyes from the bright light of a cell that was definitely not the same one he’d been in prior to his escape attempt. 

He slowly pulled himself into a sitting position, wincing as his vision started to swirl. Clearly, no one had thought to catch him as he fell from whatever they had shot him with. Not that he had expected it, but it still would've been nice. Percy looked around. 

The cell he was in was smaller than the last. Only around six feet by six feet, but this cell was an actual cell. Bars and all. Percy wasn't sure, but he thought the previous cell they'd been in had more security than this one-- or more accurately, these three.

Connected to his cell were two other cells both off one side of Percy's cell. Harry was in the cell immediately next to him, and on the other side of him was Alex. Both of the other boys were still very much knocked out. Harry was lying on his stomach, drooling slightly, whereas Alex was sat upright, leaning against the wall in the corner of his cell. Percy couldn't tell for sure, but he thought he saw the beginnings of a bruise along Alex's neck. He wondered momentarily when that could have occurred, but resolved to ask Alex when he awoke, if the younger boy even knew the answer.

Percy leaned back against the wall and sighed. He'd really been hoping that they'd get out. He missed Annabeth. It was much worse than the time he'd lost his memory and been sent to New Rome because this time he could remember more than just her name. Percy was pulled into reminiscent memories, remembering the first time they met, their quest, their first kiss-

Harry beginning to stir pulled Percy from his trance. Harry's hand grabbed the bar and he pulled himself into a sitting position with a groan. 

Percy was about to say something when Harry grumbled, "Great a new cell."

"I know it's wonderful isn't it," Percy said and Harry jumped. Apparently, Harry had not noticed him.

"Merlin, Percy! You scared me half to death!" Harry cried.

Percy laughed at him, "It's not my fault you're so grumpy when you wake up," Harry glared at him, "Did you hit your head too?"

"What do you think?"

"Touche," then, remembering that their third cellmate was still knocked out he asked, "How's Alex? I can't see him well from here."

"Bloody brilliant," a voice that most assuredly did not belong to Harry, said. Percy and Harry both jumped. Percy refocused on Alex, who still looked to be very much asleep, trying to decide how he had missed him waking up. Maybe he had been awake the entire time? Alex rolled his head towards Percy, opened his eyes, and added, "We just failed to escape, got knocked out by bloody tranquilizer darts, and got locked in an even smaller cell. So yeah, I'm doing just wonderfully."

Percy's eyes widened. He hadn't expected such a heated response from Alex, who was usually so deliberately calm. He was about to respond angrily that it hadn't been his idea when he noticed that Alex's breath was coming out faster than usual, almost as though he was on the verge of a panic attack of some sort.

"You good, Alex?" before adding as an afterthought, "and I'm not talking about everything going on right now."

\-----

Alex ran his hand through his hair and sighed. Was he okay? That was really a loaded question. He almost gave his standard answer of, "fine" but something stopped him. This wasn't Ben who worried endlessly about him. Or Tom who could never understand all of what being a spy entailed. Or even Jones, who didn't really give a damn about him passed that he was able to do his job. Not that he begrudged her. She was better than Blunt. He knew that Jones would've been eaten alive in MI6 if she didn't lose some of the emotions she held back when she was Deputy Head. But, these boys actually seemed to understand.

Sure, he didn't really know them all that well. He hadn't even talked much about their pasts, but one thing Alex prided himself on was his ability to read people, and from what he'd gathered of Harry and Percy, he figured they must have been through some difficult situations as well. Heck, the flashback Percy had their first day there proved that.

But, before Alex could decide how much he wanted to tell them, Harry asked, "What happened to your neck?"

Alex moved his hand to run across his jugular, where, no doubt, there was a painful looking bruise forming; he winced, thinking back to the encounter he had after Harry and Percy were knocked out:

 

_ "Hello, Mister Rider," said Natalie. _

_ Alex glared, only just refraining from spitting at her. _

_ "You see, Mister Rider, I was well aware that you would take longer for the drugs to take effect on you. I rather think you must be somewhat immune to them based on how often they've been used on you. That is why I asked my friend Jim to come here and, there really is no better way to put it, knock you out." _

_ Jim stepped out from the shadows and Alex had to physically force his face clean of emotion. Alex hadn't seen Jim since the man had nearly killed him. Even with the effort Alex put into the task, he wasn't entirely sure that he had succeeded in keeping the fear and memories from his face at the sight of the man. _

_ "Hello, Alex," Jim hissed, stalking towards Alex, "I wish we could talk, but I'm afraid it's time for you to sleep." _

_ Jim jammed the side of his hand into Alex's neck. Alex flew back and hit his head against the wall. The blow made him dizzy. Without warning, he fell to his knees, and after that, nothing. _

Alex wasn't sure his memory was entirely accurate. The Jim he had spoken to in that memory did not behave like the one he knew from his time with Three. His best guess: some of the drugs had settled into his system and corrupted his memory after he'd been knocked out. He shrugged in response to Harry's question, "The drugs don't have the same effect on me; I'm mostly immune, so they had to come up with an alternative method."

Alex had been determined to keep his voice nonchalant as he passed this news to his fellow prisoners, but he felt a shudder run down his spine causing his hands to twitch.

Harry's eyes trailed from Alex's face to his hands as he said softly, "It was Him wasn't it?"

Alex blew out the breath he was holding and looked Harry in the eyes. He hesitated for only a moment before nodding.

\-----

Percy scowled when he saw Alex's nod, and a low growl sounded in the back of his throat, "I'm gonna kill that bastard. I'm gonna kill him." Percy wasn't sure why he was feeling so protective over a boy he had met, however long ago they'd gotten there, but he thought it might have something to do with them being locked in a cell together. Then again, he had been protective of Annabeth and Grover pretty quickly at first too -- the being locked in a cell had probably just accelerated his protectiveness over Alex and Harry -- so maybe it was just a sign that they were starting to build a friendship. Whatever it was, Percy was more than angry with the jerk who had decided to lay his filthy hands on Alex.

Alex looked over at Percy and his face portrayed that he wanted to respond when a slow clapping sounded through the hallway outside their cells followed by the clacking of mocking footsteps. Suddenly, a young man came into view. He had black hair and narrow chocolate-colored brown eyes, but the most telling aspect of his person wasn't actually related to the man at all. It was the tension that had suddenly found its way into Alex's posture, which told Percy that this man was certainly the same man he had been wishing painful death to mere seconds ago. Percy felt a sudden, strong desire for the bars to disappear so that he could follow through with his mental threat.

He got to his feet angrily as Melton mocked, "How touching. Really this scene is adorable," Percy noticed Alex and Harry climbing to their feet beside him. Melton turned his attention to Alex and continued, "Aren't you going to introduce me to your little friends, Alex?"

"He doesn't have to," Percy said firmly with a hurricane brewing in his eyes.

Melton chuckled to himself and said to Percy, "What's this? Defending a boy you know nothing about: a boy who keeps so many secrets that you can never know which ones are the truth? Why don't you tell us how your back is, Alex? I'm sure your little friend here would love to know."

When Melton directed the last sentence at Alex, Percy's eyes involuntarily flickered to the boy in curiosity. He didn't know what Melton was talking about, but whatever it was, it couldn't mean anything good for Alex. Instead of seeing the tense expression he expected to be present on Alex's face, he saw one of smug determination.

Alex's eyes were fixed firmly on Melton with a smirk playing on the corner of his lips, "I don't know, Jim. Why don't you tell us how your uncle is instead?"

Percy was feeling a bit out of place with this conversation. The reference to Melton's uncle had taken any semblance of understanding he had for what was going on and thrown it headfirst of a bridge into a raging river, but he got the distinct impression that whatever implications were hidden under Alex's taunt had to do with something that had happened a long time ago.

Percy jumped when Melton growled, not having expected to hear the feral sound that came from the man's lips. When he spoke again, gone was the playfully mocking tone he had spoken with before. In its place was a seething hiss, "You'll pay for that one you little brat."

Percy had thus far came to an understanding that this man was not someone he wanted to mess with, which explained his confusion when Alex--who had known Melton for much longer than Percy had--responded with another flippant response clearly meant to provoke the very same man who had just threatened him, "Really? The way you paid me back last time? I don't seem to recall that going so well for you last time." Alex was clearly either very brave, very stupid, or very possibly both.

Percy really wanted to tell Alex to stop antagonizing the clearly enraged psychopath, but Harry beat him to it, "Alex…" he said in a warning voice, and he might have been planning to say more, but Melton chose that moment to grab the bars of Alex's cell, and hiss, "You're dead, kid, but don't think I'm going to make it fast. Oh no. You're going to wish you were dead by the time I'm through with you. I'm going to-"

"Jim!" the sharp but somehow still gentle voice of Natalie cut through whatever threat he had been about to make, "You will get your time with them  _ after _ I have said my piece. I told you that." She paused only long enough to allow Jim to scowl before directing her attention upon Percy, Harry, and Alex, "Now boys. I know I already expressed to you how  _ disappointed  _ I was that you have not come around to our perspective. However,  _ clearly  _ you have not, and I am going to leave it up to Jim to convert you. Just remember when the pain starts, that you brought this upon yourselves. And that is where the blame shall lie: with yourselves."

She pulled out a pair of keys as Percy exchanged a glance with Alex. Percy choked back a laugh as Alex arched his eyebrows as if to say,  _ That's really the excuse she's going to go with. Blame the pain on ourselves. She's nuts. _

Natalie turned to look at Percy suspiciously when he coughed to hide his laughter, but when she turned away towards Melton, he mouthed to Alex,  _ I know right. _

She held the keys in the air and Melton stepped towards her, "Do what you want with them, but remember that I need them  _ alive. _ "

Melton reached out to grab the keys, but she pulled them out of his reach and added, "Alive  _ and _ responsive. A vegetative state does not count as alive. Use your best judgment if you have any left."

He glared at her, but nodded reluctantly, prompting her to hand him the keys. 

Natalie had nearly left their sight when she said, without turning around, "Have fun, boys." Then, she was gone, leaving them with the slightly more psychotic psychopath, or at the very least, the more violent.

Melton looked at the three of them with a sick grin curling on his lips, and said, "Oh, we will."

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading. Hope you enjoyed. Leave a comment if you get the chance. :)


End file.
